The growth of cloud computing continues to transform the landscape in “Data Center Alley,” the fast-growing data center hub in Northern Virginia. The appetite for cloud capacity has prompted a burst of data center leasing and land deals, as data center developers lay the groundwork for the next phase of cloud growth.

Northern Virginia is already the world’s largest data center market, and is about to get even bigger. Three service providers have recently acquired land in Loudoun County to enter the market, while recent property deals suggest more large data centers are on the way.

Land values have soared past $1.2 million an acre in recent deals in Ashburn, the region’s largest Internet traffic intersection. Deals currently in the works could exceed that valuation, as the scarcity of prime development sites drives prices higher.